Before success comes in any man’s life, he is sure to meet with much temporary defeat, and, perhaps, some failure. When defeat overtakes a man, the easiest and most logical thing to do is to quit. That is exactly what the majority of men do. More than five hundred of the most successful men this country has ever known told the author their greatest success came just one step beyond the point at which defeat had overtaken them. ››Every adversity, every failure, every heartache carries with it the seed of an equal or greater benefit. ››To the winner, there is 100-percent elation, 100-percent fun, 100-percent laughter; and yet the only thing left to the loser is resolution and determination. ››Take chances, make mistakes. That's how you grow. Pain nourishes your courage. You have to fail in order to practice being brave. ››When I was young, I observed that nine out of ten things I did were failures. So I did ten times more work. ››Show me a person who has never made a mistake and I'll show you somebody who has never achieved much. ››I'll match my flops with anybody's but I wouldn't have missed them. Flops are a part of life's menu and I've never been one to miss out on any of the courses. ››You may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing that we call 'failure' is not the falling down, but the staying down. ››It's not the critic who counts; it's not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done the better. The credit belongs to those of us who are actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood. We strive valiantly and sometimes there's the triumph of achievement but at the worst, we fail, but at least we fail while daring greatly. ››Life is a process of becoming, a combination of states we have to go through. Where people fail is that they wish to elect a state and remain in it. ››You'll get mixed up, of course, as you already know. You'll get mixed up with many strange birds as you go. So be sure when you step. Step with care and great tact and remember that Life's a Great Balancing Act. Just never forget to be dexterous and deft. And never mix up your right foot with your left. ››It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all - in which case, you fail by default. ››
